28Synonyms found for sham

Word Origin & History

sham 1677, "a trick, a hoax, a fraud," perhaps from sham, a northern dialectal variant of shame (q.v.). Sense of "Something meant to be mistaken for something else" is from 1728. The meaning in pillow-sham (1721) is from the notion of "counterfeit." The adj. is attested from 1681; the verb from 1677. Shamateur "amateur sportsman who acts like a professional" is from 1896.

Example Sentences for sham

Arthroscopic knee surgery is a remedy for arthritis, but researchers have matched its effectiveness with a sham operation.

The river will go down then all you environmentalist will get all excited about the dead zone in the gulf, which is another sham.

Sham or not, more than twenty people were reported killed in election-related violence.

We were rattled up by an alarm,-perhaps a sham one, to keep us awake and lively.

He also has advice for faculty members who are sucked into participating on sham committees about how to survive them.

Essentially it is a sham being sold to those looking for the easy way to get a degree.

They have the bitterness of a group whose worldview has proven itself to be a sham.

Animals given a sham injection regained little or none of the lost strength, the group reports.

Confidence has been lost, media that has backed this nonsense for so long are now trying to prop up the sham science.

And for those who want to freeze their brains, here's some real news: it's a sham.